NGA 2014 Summer Workforce Meetings
Selected Handouts
“The Changing World of
Credentials/Badges/Certifications.”
For further information, contact
Dr. Keith. W. Bird, Senior Policy Associate
Corporation for a Skilled Workforce
kbird@skilledwork.org
843-685-4249
Credentials: It’s all about Valuing Learning
• Lumina defines high-quality credentials as degrees and certificates that have
well-defined and transparent learning outcomes which provide clear pathways to
further education and employment. All of these efforts are rooted in and serve
to amplify two basic truths:
• The first is that learning—all types of learning—can be objectively measured.
• And the second is that these measurements are absolutely vital in ensuring the
relevance and value of a college credential.
• It's not so much what students know these days; rather, it's about mastering the
skills required to constantly know more—and to use what we know. Students
need to "learn how to learn.“ required to constantly know more—and to use
what we know. Students need to "learn how to learn.”
Credentialing System in the United States
Challenges:
Credentials . . . and Majors/Occupations Matter
• 43% of licenses and certificates earn more than an Associates Degree
• 27% of licenses and certificates earn more than a Baccalaureate Degree
• 31% of Associate Degrees earn more than a Baccalaureate Degree
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• Source: Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce
• And what about other “Alternative Credentials” U. S. Census Study: Measuring
Alternative Educational Credentials: 2012 (2014)
Key Challenges to Credentialing
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The Proliferation of Certificates and Certifications (terminology chaos)
Lack of Understanding of “Alternative Credentials”
Credentials are not always transferrable across programs and geographies
Wide variance in quality of certificates and certifications/Inconsistent quality assurance mechanisms
Competencies (job tasks and knowledge, skills, abilities) not consistently defined
Many credentials are too expensive and are not always available in all locations
Confusion among certification, certificates and accreditation with stakeholders
No understanding of the relationship between certificates, certifications and degrees and how they
relate to pathways/flow/Intra-profession and inter-professional mobility
Reliance on different forms of assessment
Lack of transparency, lack of portability and articulation
Mixed market value of credentials
Credentials can’t be used as proxies for competence
The U.S. Credentials Framework
(Being developed by CSW and CLASP with support
from Lumina Foundation)
The Credential Framework provides a comprehensive framework for
understanding the types of learning associated with the diverse array of
credentials in the U.S. and offers a unified way to depict levels of learning
outcomes/competencies reflected in both degree and non-degree
credentials. It aims to support integration, comparison and alignment
across varied credentials and to value learning wherever it has occurred
and allow students to “stack” credentials to advance in career pathways.
Credentials
Framework:
Connecting theConnecting
Dots Among Quality
Credentials
Framework:
theCredentials
Dots
among Quality Credentials
DEGREES
CERTIFICATIONS
CREDENTIALS
CERTIFICATES
non-degree and
degree, PS and
other
organizations
DIPLOMAS
Postsecondary
FRAMEWORK
LICENSES
DIGITAL BADGES
APPRENTICESHIP
CREDENTIALS
Credentials Framework Complements Other Key Initiatives
Labor Market
Reference Instruments
(e.g., USDOL O*NET,
Competency Frameworks, Job
Profiling)
Credential Registry
Framing
(e.g. GWU-ANSI)
Transcript Portfolios
(e.g., WICHE Interstate
Passport)
Industry Sector
Credentials Alignment
(e.g., NNBIA Blueprint)
Credit Definition
(e.g. Carnegie Unit rethinking)
CREDENTIALS
FRAMEWORK
(Meta Framework)
K-12 Education
(e.g., Common Core State
Standards)
Competency-Based PostSecondary Education
Expansion
Higher Education
Degrees Alignment
(e.g., DQP, Tuning, Discipline
& Field of Study Specific)
Career & Technical Education
(e.g. Career Clusters)
Factoring Competencies
into Academic &
Professional Accreditation
Prior Learning Assessment
Expansion
Why is a U.S. Credential Framework Important?

A Credentials Framework based on outcomes based performance measures of learning (not
time-based) promotes transparency, comparability and portability of credentials

Clear value propositions can and must be articulated for learners, employers, and educators
from the creation of a unified Credentials Framework. Framing clear, compelling value
propositions is essential to stakeholder adoption.

A unified Framework is essential to maximize opportunities for all learners. Labor market
value is integral to definition of a quality “non-degree” credential.

Competencies within a framework need to include three core dimensions: knowledge, skills,
abilities. The Credentials Framework needs multiple levels of competency to reflect the
diversity of learning and complexity reflected by various credentials.

The Framework needs to reflect that credentials are acquired and used both in linear and
non-linear ways. Credentialing in U.S. involves diverse organizations and approaches.
Institutional, State, Federal Policy
Recommendations:
• Begin a National Dialogue to establish a national competency-based framework for Postsecondary Education to establish learning
outcomes for multiple levels of credentials with input from multiple participants, including education, workforce, and employer
stakeholders
• Create a National Clearinghouse for Credentials
 Provide standard terminology and methodologies to document the development and documentation of standards for competency
based qualifications and curricula (including PLA/ CTE credit transfer)
 Create a central database with common terminology and ensure proper categorization of programs recognized by federal and state
governments and industry with quality assurance mechanisms (e. g. third party validation and based on National/International
Standards and Regulatory Standards)
• Promote state & institutional policies & practices that:
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Create a central database with common terminology
Preapprove equivalencies between credits & certifications
Streamline course approval
Promote co-enrollment/Advanced Standing
• Develop “Pay for Performance” Strategies (e.g. provide incentives for accelerating time to credential through competency-based
approaches)
• Require/Scale Use of:
 Competency-based assessments
 Award of credit for prior learning
 Articulation between credit and non-credit learning
Institutional, State, Federal Policy
Recommendations:
• Encourage Institutional, State, and Federal Policies that Support Innovation
• Use FA experimental authority to test competency rather than semester-based Pell delivery mechanisms
(including PLA)
• Increase alignment and linkages between federal, state, and local public workforce systems, AE, and educational
institutions in developing stackable credentials and career pathways
• Establish linked goals among workforce and economic development and education stakeholders in key measureable
metrics and report performance outcomes (e.g. X% increase in labor market validated credentials in critical
industries)
• Spread the message that a “college” education includes options other than a baccalaureate degree
• Ensure that curricula reflects labor market needs and that students choose the right programs and credentials
• Increase career navigation support and focus on labor market outcomes
• Raise the bar for business engagement
 Promote the joint establishment of rigorous competency/standards/curricula/credentials and quality assurance
mechanisms between business and education (curriculum development)
 Challenge employers to share ongoing responsibility for a competitive workforce and establishing meaningful
curricula and credentials and utilizing credentials in HR and talent Development